Norton named to COBRA regional team

BY ANDRES FOCIL

FAYETTEVILLE – Jasmine Norton, a junior outside hitter for the University of Arkansas volleyball team, has earned a spot on COBRA Magazine’s Midsouth All-Region Team as announced by the publication this week. Norton is one of 15 players recognized from the region, consisting of schools from Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.

During the 2011 season, Norton was fifth in the Southeastern Conference with 3.63 kills per set and fourth in the league with 4.21 points per set. She also turned in 2.06 digs per set and 0.56 blocks per set. She was third on the team with 10 double-double performances, nine of which came during conference play. Norton registered double-digit kills in 24 of Arkansas’ 31 matches, including four matches with at least 22 kills. She had a season-high 27 kills in five-set road matches at Georgia and No. 16 Kentucky.

With a putaway against Georgetown at the Deacon Invitational, Norton became the 14th member of Arkansas’ 1,000-kills club. After collecting 403 kills this season, the Rowlett, Texas, native now sits in sixth place on the Razorbacks’ all-time list with 1,350 career kills. During the course of the conference season, Norton was twice selected the SEC Player of the Week, the first such honors of her career.

Norton was named to the 2011 All-SEC First Team when year-end league honors were announced Monday. She is the sixth player in program history to earn three All-SEC accolades during her career. In addition to her postseason awards, Norton was a Preseason All-SEC selection and went on to be named to the West Point Challenge All-Tournament Team.

The COBRA publication is dedicated to celebrating the success of volleyball players of African, Samoan and Tongan descent in hopes of encouraging those ethnic groups across the country to pursue the sport. For more information regarding Razorback volleyball or University of Arkansas athletics, please visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com.